Pens, Ice, and Portals
by StarstruckJedi
Summary: Now stuck on a world of ice and snow, the members of the New Order of the Stone valiantly search for an exit portal, while Lukas desperately seeks time to write in his journal. Placed during the opening crawl of Ep. 7: Access Denied. Uses Female Jesse.


_**Late-Night Ponderings**_

 _All my life, I've heard stories of courageous heroes who risked everything for the ultimate triumph... heroes who fought long and hard, but in the end, rose victorious, and eventually, came to be known around the world for their deeds. I always marveled at their strength, their tenacity, their courage. And who wouldn't? After all, it's not just anyone who can do things that great._

 _Or is it?_

 _Who could have imagined that one day I'd be standing by the side of the greatest heroes I've ever known of, gifted with the privilege of calling them friends? Who could have known the things we'd go through together, the struggles, the triumphs, and ultimately, a victory like those in stories of old? Who could have guessed the choices that would lead to here, the things that no one would have thought mattered, that led to so much? Once again, the Order of the Stone emerged victorious – but now, we're counted its members. Together, we've been through some of the craziest things I could imagine. Through thick and thin, these guys have always been there for me – and it's clear our adventures are far from over._

 _I've been wanting to record our adventures for some time now. If there's one thing our experience with legends has taught me, it's that it's important for stories to endure. And what better way to ensure that they're passed down correctly than to record them close to the time they happened? There are so many important details that could be lost over time, and I think my friends deserve to have their story preserved. With that in mind, I would have started writing a long time ago, but things have been...busy. This has been the first opportunity to present itself – too bad it couldn't be a warmer place, but at this point, I'll take what I can get. At least it's not underwater. And no one's being attacked by squids._

 _Let me back up a little; not to the beginning just yet, but just to where I can start recording our current adventure. Before this week, it had been some time since I'd seen my friends. With all the damage the Witherstorm left in its wake, I was kept pretty busy helping with the cleanup. During that time I was able to find my old friends and teammates. Previously, we'd been known as the Ocelots, and we'd won several building contests together. Unfortunately, due to bitterness at the fame that wasn't theirs, their loyalties had changed, and they made it clear that not only was I not welcome in their renamed group, but they were going after the other members of the Order, intent on claiming for themselves the most valuable treasure sought to date – the Eversource. Thankfully, my friends here have proved_ _their_ _loyalty in friendship time after time, and proved faithful through this challenge as well. Without them, I don't know how I would have gotten through it. I only wish I could have helped them more in return._

 _Anyway, it's been several days now since we set out to stop the "Blazerods" from stealing the Eversource, and eventually ended up in a strange hallway filled with portals. We've been through several since then, hoping to find our way home, but haven't had much luck so far. Instead, we've found a creepy mansion, a water world, bats... pretty much anything you can think of besides home. Hence our current situation, sitting in a moderate-sized cave halfway up a snow-encrusted mountain. It could be a while before we reach our world again._

 _It's strange to say it, but I'm actually okay with that for now. It's been good to reconnect after so much time, and it's actually nice to be adventuring again, too._

 _I've already mentioned my friends a lot. I guess before actually writing about all the things we've done together, I ought to introduce them. Like I said, they've been there when I needed them most. We've come through so much, and I'm glad to be with them now._

 _Whoops, guess I really ought to introduce myself first. I'm Lukas. I have blonde hair and blue eyes, and I've been told I'm resourceful, and a good friend. I don't really know what else to say about myself, so I'm gonna move on to the others._

 _I've known Petra since before any of the others were much more to me than rivals. Even then, I looked up to them, but it's pretty tough to make friends on the battlefield. At least when you're on opposing teams._

 _Petra started out as a bit of a loner. She's red-haired with brown eyes. She's an impressive fighter, and had gone to the Nether long before any of us had. Despite her tough exterior, though, she's got a soft heart, and she's loyal to those who are loyal to her. She's been like a sister to me for a long time, and I've done my best to be a brother to her. It's been really good to see her get some close friends._

 _Big and tough-looking with brown hair and eyes, Axel is one of those guys who can seem intimidating, but cares a lot about people, and is incredibly protective of those he cares about. I think that's why he was so slow to trust me. He didn't want to risk me hurting his friends. He's been easier to get along with since he realized I'm not going to, but, of course, he's still kind of rough sometimes, and I'm sure he'll never stop teasing. He and Olivia are back home right now, taking care of some things in town. Not sure whether he'll be disappointed or glad to have missed this. Chances are that if he were here, he'd complain through half of it, but brag for a week once we got back._

 _Olivia is the type who gives everyone a chance. I've always appreciated that. She has dark skin, hair, and eyes, and can be a little intimidating sometimes, but there's always a warmth in the way she talks to people. I've come to realize that for all the pushiness she can have, she's really insecure about her abilities. It's been neat to watch her grow through that, and to watch the brother/sister dynamic between her and Axel._

 _And then there's Jesse. How do I describe her? Headstrong, natural leader, almost always ready to jump into adventure even if she's not sure she can handle it. She has a lot of faith in her friends – sometimes more than we deserve. I know she's had more faith in_ _me_ _than_ _I_ _deserve. I can't believe how many times she's noticed when I'm down and come to offer support._

 _It's kind of cute how protective of everyone she is. In some cases, she really can't do much, but she's sure going to try. She's very determined. I'll give her that. And... honestly, she's probably the best friend I have. Besides being brave and confident, she's encouraged me a lot, and I don't know how many times she talked me out of leaving the group. So glad she did. She has brown hair with a gold ribbon near the front, and the most beautiful green eyes I've ever seen..._

 _Okay. This is definitely going to need some editing if anyone else is going to read it. Anyway, I really look up to Jesse. She's been a good friend. A great friend. I mean, she's been great to work with. Yeah._

* * *

"Lukas?"

Startled, he jumped a little, then, recognizing the voice, almost slammed the book shut. He caught himself just in time, though, realizing how suspicious that action would seem, and gently lowered the cover, pulling himself to his feet and turning around as innocently as he could.

"Jesse. Why are you still up?" Most of the time he couldn't help being gentle when he was talking to her, and right now was no exception. Although she'd startled him, he couldn't help being concerned. It was late, and... "You're probably going to need all the energy you can get to find that portal tomorrow." He almost put his hand on her shoulder, but, a bit embarrassed, ended up rubbing the back of his neck instead as his gaze dropped for a moment. When he raised his eyes again, Jesse's hand was on her hip, but her eyes were still kind.

"You need your sleep, too, Lukas. Actually, that's what I'm doing out here." She turned to look out of the nearby cave entrance, shrugging. "I'm actually not 'still up.' The cold woke me, and I couldn't help noticing you were missing."

Lukas's eyes widened, his thoughts only on her mention of the cold. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I have a wood block in my inventory, and you have flint and steel – I should have let you start a fire."

Jesse chuckled, and Lukas couldn't help thinking how much he liked the spark in her eyes when she did that. "That's okay. I'm fine, really." Her gaze landed on the book in his hands and the glowstone block beside him. "What are you up to?"

Feeling a bit awkward, Lukas rubbed the back of his neck again. "Oh, you know, just writing." At the curious look on her face, he realized more explanation was needed, and continued, "I want to keep a record of our adventures." Jesse's eyes grew a little wider.

"Really? Lukas, that's so cool!" The excitement in her eyes quickly faded to concern as she added, "But you should really get some sleep. There should be time to write tomorrow."

A short laugh escaped Lukas's lips. "Yeah, hopefully. This is the first chance I've had so far, and I've been wanting to for a while." He shrugged, examining the cave wall. Although he didn't want to admit it, the loss of his old friends was hitting him pretty hard again. "And... I guess I don't really feel like sleeping just yet."

"Yeah, I understand." Jesse's smile was supportive, but also sympathetic. Lukas guessed she still wasn't going to let him go until he promised to sleep. He was a little surprised when she walked past him and onto the ledge outside the cave. Sitting with her feet just off it, she turned to look at him, and without even thinking about it, Lukas took the cue and sat down beside her.

"You know, I didn't really get a chance to say much about it, but I missed you while you... well, while _we_ were gone, I guess. I mean, you're a part of the Order of the Stone, too – it seemed like you should have been with us. But," she interrupted herself quickly, "I understand that what you were doing was important." She looked a little embarrassed. "Probably more important than what we were doing."

Lukas chuckled softly, his eyes on his hands. The book still sat in their clutch, and he tucked it quietly into his inventory. "Yeah, I missed you guys, too." Suddenly concerned, he added, "I hope Axel and Olivia are doing okay."

Jesse's eyes were once again focused on the expansive night sky, and a bit of worry creased her brow. "Yeah, me too."

They sat in silence for a few moments, and Lukas couldn't help thinking how good it was to be by her side again. Then he caught himself. _Wow, why do I keep doing that?_ Having torn his thoughts so quickly from that track, he found the full force of the cold suddenly sinking in.

"Lukas, you're shivering," Jesse exclaimed suddenly, putting her arm around him. Her bright green eyes stared straight into his for a moment, and then, afraid of what she'd see if the moment was prolonged, he chuckled and shrugged, turning back to look at the dark and distant horizon.

"Yeah, I guess I am a little cold." Her arm remained where it was, and he found himself reluctant to let her remove it. The moment lasted longer than he expected, yet seemed not at all long enough when it suddenly ended and Jesse's arm dropped back to her side.

"Oh, wow. Guess it was later than I thought."

Lukas realized suddenly that he'd been so focused on his thoughts that he hadn't noticed the horizon turn from black to pink right before his eyes. He stood quickly, then, offering a hand to Jesse. "Guess we better go wake the others. The sooner we find the exit portal from this world, the sooner we can find the way home."

Jesse smiled and began walking. "Yeah, you're right."

"Hey, Jesse?"

She turned back. "Yeah?"

He gave her a small, slightly shy smile and a shrug. "Thanks for talking to me. I hadn't realized how lonely it was getting out here."

Her return smile made his own grow.

"No problemo."

Lukas chuckled, following her into the cave.

* * *

Petra was already awake and busily looking through her inventory when the two arrived. Ivor was still curled up by the wall, and proved difficult to wake up. However, courtesy to a sharp kick in the chest from Petra, he soon joined them – albeit somewhat reluctantly.

Jesse was quick to get to the point. "Okay, now that we're all here -" pointed glance at Ivor - "we need to decide how we're going to do this. Where to start looking."

Petra was the first to speak up. "Well, this mountain has a lot of caves. I think any of those could make a good hiding place for a portal." Ivor, of course, was quick to disagree.

"Most of the previous portals have been in the open. We should search the ground below."

"Uh, none of the other places really had caves to put portals in. I still think it's pretty likely it's up here."

Lukas glanced between the two, both of whom now wore stubborn expressions and had their arms folded across their chests. And looked to be ready to continue their argument for quite some time. Stepping up between them, he presented his own concerns. "Um, Jesse? Another thing to consider... we have no idea how long we'll be here. Hopefully we'll find the portal today -" he put his hands out in a hopefully reassuring way - "but it could be a good idea to look for food."

Jesse looked thoughtful. "Right. Not much chance of finding food up here, but there might be something down below."

Petra, although more agreeable toward Lukas's suggestion than Ivor's, was still somewhat stuck on her own idea. "I don't know if we'd find food either place, Jesse. This whole place is an ice cube." She turned to glare at Ivor again before continuing, "I still think the caves are the best place to look."

Ivor looked ready to give a rebuff, but Jesse quickly interrupted. "Okay, so we've got our options. Search the caves, search the ground – and hopefully find food – or, I guess we could split up and do both." Looking thoughtful, she silently weighed the choices in her head.

* * *

 _ **If it's all right with you guys, I'd like to take some input from readers on how the story should continue, kind of like the game itself. I'll have a poll in my profile for a while, and then continue the story based on the feedback I get. Obviously, no one's required to give input, but it would be much appreciated. If no one shows interest or gives a response, I'll continue based on whatever I feel best. I think this way I should be able to connect with the readers a little more, and have some support as I continue writing.**_

 _ **Anyway, if anyone's interested, I'll have the option available.**_

 _ **For those who don't want to go to the poll or can't vote for whatever reason, here's a list of the options, just to be clear:**_

 _ **A. Search cave**_

 _ **B. Search ground**_

 _ **C. Split up**_

 _ **Some possibilities of ways to split up could be with Ivor and Petra searching the caves with Lukas and Jesse on the ground, Jesse and Lukas searching caves with the other two searching the ground, Petra and Lukas in caves and Jesse and Ivor on ground, or Petra and Jesse in caves and Jesse and Ivor on ground.**_

 _ **Reviews are always appreciated, especially since I'm relatively new to writing for this series, and although I'm not new to writing fanfiction, I am new to the site. Feel free to let me know how I'm doing.**_

 _ **I'm into college now, and pretty busy with it, so it will be a while before I can update this. My apologies for taking so long – I'll write and post the next chapter when I can.**_

 _ **Thanks!**_


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